Your
Dream House

The
largest percentage of most people's incomes goes toward keeping a roof
over their heads, yet how many people every think of themselves as consumers
of architecture? How many people ever think of architecture at all unless
that roof leaks? In this activity, students will begin to think about
what they might like in a place to live,
then go out to find it or design it!

Procedure:

Ask students
to think about their own houses or apartments.

What are
their favorite things about their houses?

What would
they like to change?

What if
they could go shopping for a house of their own?

Would
they want to build a brand-new house or would they shop for an older
house? What are the advantages of each?

Assign or let students choose one of these options:

Shop
for a dream house: Research neighborhoods in the Pittsburgh
region to find a place that fits your lifestyle. If possible visit
the neighborhood to go "house-hunting." When you find
a house you would like to live in (it doesn't have to be for sale!)
draw or photograph it and write a real estate ad that would get
you to buy it. [Note to teachers: you may wish to limit the area
of the hunt to a range your students can reasonable cover on their
own.]

Design
a dream house: Research neighborhoods in the Pittsburgh region
to find a place where you would like to build a house. If possible,
visit the neighborhood and pick a building site. Design your house
to fit the site and draw a floor plan and front elevation to scale.

"Design
a Dream House" can be easily simplified as low kindergarten level.
For older students, extend this activity into a math-lifeskills exercise
by having them research and compare the actual costs of building or
buying a house, then make a budget for buying and maintaining a house.

Photos
and drawings: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks

Pittsburgh
History & Landmarks

Susan Donley

Susan
Donley

Pittsburgh History & Landmarks

Source:
Adapted form material copyrighted in 1990 by Susan Donley. Used by permission.